Religion

In today’s society the Hindu faith is quite existent and practiced amongst most of those who are of Indian race. When the indentured labourers occupied our land, due to the fact that they were bonded to the whites, they were not allowed to practice their religion as the way in which they did in Indian. For instance, Temples and Mandirs were not constructed during Indentureship as Christianity was the elite religion. However, as we speed up the hands of time to 2014, Mandirs or Temples are all over Trinidad and here Hindus are allowed to go and pray, learn about their scriptures, Gods and way of life as well as sing and dance religious songs without being prosecuted by the authorities. Hindu activist Mr Satnarine Maharaj, who is also the founder and President of the Sanatan Dharma Maha Sabha, played a great role in enduring the this Hindu religion continued in this country and he fought to ensure that Indians in general have a voice. Mr Maharaj also was the founder of the popular Hindu radio station radio Jaagrati which ensures that every Hindu home is filled with teachings of the Hindu religion. As mentioned previously, the Siewdass Mandir is one of the most popular Mandir’s in Trinidad and is located in Waterloo and the newly Lakshmi Narayan Temple is another popular temple in Trinidad. Mr Maharaj is also an advocate for education and with the help of the Trinidadian government, he ensures that all Hindu boys and girls have access to an education.